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Author Notes: I've been making my own marshmallows for years. They're so simple to make, but they pack such a "wow" that I love giving them as holiday gifts. This is a basic vanilla marshmallow recipe, with variations following. —campagnes

Lightly grease an 8x8 square pan, then coat with confectioner's sugar. Set aside.

Combine sugar, corn syrup, and 1/2 cup water in a large saucepan. Stir over high heat until sugar is dissolved; allow to cook to 250-255 degrees without stirring.

Meanwhile, combine the gelatin and 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan; allow to sit for 10 minutes, then melt gelatin over low heat until liquefied. Keep in a warm place until ready to use.

Using a stand mixer, beat egg whites and salt until they're firm but creamy.

When sugar mixture has reached 250-255 degrees, remove from heat. Promptly stir in gelatin mixture, stirring briskly (gelatin will bubble up - be sure to use a large saucepan!).

With stand mixer on high speed, stream gelatin mixture slowly into egg whites. Whip on high speed until mixture starts to pull away from sides of the bowl, about 5-8 minutes. Beat in vanilla, then spread quickly in prepared pan and allow to stand for at least 1 hour. Cut into desired shapes and roll in confectioner's sugar.

FOR PEPPERMINT MARSHMALLOWS: Decrease vanilla to 1/2 tablespoon, and add 1/4 tsp. peppermint extract and a dab of green gel color, if desired.

FOR ROSE MARSHMALLOWS: When adding vanilla, add a scant 1/4 tsp. rose water and a dab of pink gel color, if desired.

FOR CHOCOLATE FUDGE MARSHMALLOWS: Bring 4 tbsp. water to a boil, then sir in 4 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa. After whipping vanilla into marshmallows, fold cocoa mixture loosely into marshmallows without fully combining. Spread in prepared pan (fudge marshmallows may take a bit longer to set). Roll fudge marshmallows in confectioner's sugar with a bit of cocoa powder added, if desired.

Hi, Victoria! I turned the marshmallow out onto a powdered-sugared board and used a long chef's knife to make quick, straight cuts through. You'll want to have a damp, hot towel handy to wipe the blade a few times, since they're so sticky (or just occasionally dust your blade with powdered sugar).

I tried this and ran into some trouble with the sequencing of the steps. My sugar dissolved and reached 255 well before my gelatin had dissolved. Perhaps the first and second steps should be reversed? Or the sugar should be heated over extremely low heat until the gelatin is almost ready?

I'm sorry it gave you trouble, bottomupfood; typically, when I make it, I bloom and melt the gelatin while the sugar syrup is cooking and find that both elements are ready around the same time. Feel free to switch the order of the steps if that works better for you! :) Did you have good results otherwise?

(Your sugar mixture might come to temperature more quickly if you're using a gas flame; I'm stuck with electric, which works more slowly. Don't know if that's relevent to your experience, but it's worth noting.)

Thanks for the response! Yes, I was using a gas flame. Maybe the order of the steps depends on the type of stove you have! The marshmallows turned out pretty well. Thinner than I would have liked, but that's my fault for halving the recipe but using the same size pan. I think I want to find a way to use agar instead of gelatin next time. Gelatin is kind of gross! I liked incorporating the extracts for flavors and will definitely explore more in that area. Thanks for giving me a good start with this recipe!